EGN NEWS DESK
It checked out first like an embarrassing loss for a president struggling to rally his party behind him: For three hours on Tuesday night time, President Biden appeared to have misplaced the Democratic caucus on a faraway Pacific island, American Samoa, to a little-known opponent.
But it seems that the embarrassment was not Mr. Biden’s. Or at the very least not his alone.
By 12:25 a.m. Eastern time on Wednesday, party officers in Pago Pago corrected their very own arithmetic. Mr. Biden had not, the truth is, misplaced. He had managed a tie, securing three of the territory’s six delegates — yet one more than the party had initially reported.
There was no subject with the poll counting: Jason Palmer, a largely unknown entrepreneur from Maryland who had campaigned on a promise to enhance the Samoan training system, acquired 51 votes to Mr. Biden’s 40.
The downside was a rounding error: Mr. Palmer’s 56 p.c share amounted to three.4 delegates, however was incorrectly rounded as much as 4. Mr. Biden’s 44 p.c share amounted to 2.6 delegates, however was incorrectly rounded down to 2. Dean Phillips, the Minnesota congressman, was the one different Democrat who appeared on ballots, however received neither any delegates nor any votes. (The preliminary outcomes and delegate allocation have been confirmed by The Associated Press.)
In an announcement with the corrected numbers, Andrew Berquist, a nationwide committeeman, stated merely, “We have amended our delegate rely, on account of a calculation error. Remainder of the outcomes are the identical.”
While the error might have value Mr. Palmer a clear win, his vote tally nonetheless did come as a shock. But Democrats in American Samoa have a historical past of delivering sudden outcomes, even when vote counting goes in response to plan. In 2016, a majority of caucusgoers solid ballots for uncommitted delegates reasonably than for Hillary Clinton or Bernie Sanders. And in 2020, Michael R. Bloomberg, the previous mayor of New York City, received there, giving him the one victory in his marketing campaign.
Mr. Palmer might have been the one Democrat to marketing campaign there, internet hosting digital town-hall occasions and using native employees within the island territory, which is about 2,500 miles southwest of Hawaii. Its residents aren’t eligible to vote within the normal election.
Mr. Palmer campaigned within the territory on three points: improved entry to well being care, further instructional sources and aggressive efforts to curb the results of local weather change. He credit his American Samoa marketing campaign group of simply three workers for serving to him join with residents.
“I felt like I actually was listening to them, understanding them, and constructing a plan to deal with their wants,” he stated in an interview with The New York Times earlier than the tally was amended.
In his quixotic marketing campaign towards Mr. Biden, Mr. Palmer has emphasised his relative youth. At 52, he’s the youngest Democrat within the race, and practically 30 years Mr. Biden’s junior.
“Joe Biden has been an excellent public servant for 50 years,” he stated. “I voted for him 4 years in the past. But we wish a youthful candidate. We need somebody who’s going to be extra energetic and lively and may beat Donald Trump.”
Mr. Palmer has additionally sought to differentiate himself from the Mr. Biden on coverage: In February, he called for a cease-fire in Gaza in a video posted on X.
But whereas he acknowledged that Mr. Biden is “very possible” to win the party’s nomination, he stated he would marketing campaign subsequent in Arizona and concentrate on his plan to repair the nation’s immigration system, together with different points he has labored on.
“This is a really critical marketing campaign,” Mr. Palmer stated. “My purpose is to win sufficient delegates to the Democratic National Convention to make training a precedence subject on this election.”
